Customer Reviews

Why Be Catholic?: Understanding Our Experience and Tradition

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I read this book 6 years ago, when I was considering becoming a Catholic. It answered many questions I had about the Church, and was a positive factor in my decision to convert to Catholicism. I liked the fact that it explains the direct lineage from the Church founded by Jesus, and is honest about both the great things the Church has been and done, and the times when the Catholic Church and Hierarchy have made big mistakes. I highly recommend it, and am ordering another copy to replace one I loaned out and never got back!

Whether you're wondering about coming, staying or going, this book will remind you why anyone would want to be Catholic. The authors give a clear and coherent explanation of many commonly misunderstood facets of the Church, including celibacy and the papacy, but the unique virtues of this book lie in its discussions of the Church today. Especially good are the sections on spirituality, ethnic Catholicism, and community. After reading the first two chapters, I had written countless marginal notes in the vein of "Yes, this is me," or "How true!" However, these marks became less laudatory in the section on women in the Church. Despite attempts at inclusivity, the authors betray sexist stereotypes of women as passive and men as power-hungry. I found these generalizations did not match my experiences in the Church and was rather offended to see the contributions of women, both lay and religious, glossed over in favor of the hierarchy. Also, the description of the Church as being feminine but hiding it well would certainly not encourage me toward Catholicism. The final chapter of saints is tantalizingly terse. I would have appreciated more detailed sketches of fewer people, but it does open up many avenues for exploration of the Church's past. In total, I would recommend this book to all the people who have asked me why I am Catholic, because the first half really gets at the heart of the mystery and service of the Church, but I would suggest they skim over the masculine/feminine dichotomy.

I was impressed by the way this book looks honestly at both the postive aspects of being Catholic and the "shadow" side. Reading it reinforced for me all the good reasons to be Catholic, reaffirming for me my decision to profess my faith in the Catholic Church some years ago. I am presently serving as Coordinator of Catholic Campus Ministry in a small university, and often have students (both Catholic and non) that have questions about the Catholic faith. I plan to have several copies of this book on hand to loan them. I will highly recommend it to those thinking of leaving their Catholic faith!

Why be Catholic is an persuasive presentation in favor of the Catholic faith. Rohr and Martos explain why one should be Catholic by answering three questions: (1) What's great about being Catholic; (2) What is the Shadow side of being Catholic; and (3) How can you be Catholic in America today? As a bonus they discuss our heros and heroines.

One of the reasons to be Catholic is tradition. The authors explain how many of the problems of our age came from abandoning tradition . For example our "neglect of the teachings of Jesus" lead to the many difficulties that arise from the mad rush to obtain personal wealth. They also compare Catholic doctrine that comes from tradition with the doctrine of other faith traditions which have often abandoned tradition. Other reasons for being Catholic include the church's Universal view, sense of community, and emphasis upon personal holiness.

The shadow side of Catholicism emphasizes its problems. The authors mention our occasional lack of universality, and ethnic religiosity. They also suggest that Catholic often is seen as "unscriptural" because it fails to sufficiently emphasize the Bible. Also the Church is an "institution" and accordingly sometimes impedes the faith of the people. None of these "shadows" weigh enough to undermine the benefits of Catholicism.
The authors make several splendid points concerning true practice of Christianity. They note that from the early centuries the laity considered it their mission to spread the faith. Instead of preaching people "lived their lives in such an extraordinary way that others were attracted to their way of life." Hopefully such wisdom can be applied more today.

The Roman Catholic Church has taken so much of a beating lately, mostly self-inflicted, that even lovers of the Church might be forgiven for wondering what might be the point of remaining Catholic.

To answer this desperate question come Richard Rohr and Joseph Martos to remind us of what it is about Catholicism that is still potent and worthy of our attention. Rohr and Martos are quite critical of the "ethnic Catholicism" that has become a hallmark of the religion. The strength of the Irish, Italians, French and others who brought their faith with them as they emigrated is that it was such a strong mark of their identity. The weak part is that this has little to do with the faith that Jesus asked us to exhibit. Similarly, the consumer Catholicism that marks recent American society no longer carries the counter-cultural message of the gospel, but becomes an extension of the national character.

Rohr and Martos highlight the special genius that is Catholicism - among other things, of its embrace (in spite of the male domination of its hierarchy) of the "feminine" spirit of forgiveness, healing and service. Of the martyrs, intellectuals, founders, humanists and eccentrics that have made up the rank and file of its holiest citizens, the saints. Rohr and Martos are hopeful that the Church can rid itself of the malign influences that have come to become synonymous with being a Roman Catholic. They are not afraid to talk of the Church's "shadow" side - its rigidity and dogmatism - while advocating a balance between its masculine and feminine impulses.

The Catholic Church they advocate is one that continually circles back to the Church of Jesus, who eschewed titles and honors and embraced the cross; who reached out to the lowly and forsaken rather than devising canonical penalties against them; who offered salvation the whole world - not only the self-appointed insiders and connected clerical caste. Whether there is still life in Mother Church is a question they would answer in the affirmative; whether the disaffected Catholic reader would agree is another question.

But if you are feeling abandoned by the Church and alienated by those currently in control, Rohr and Martos will remind you that the glories of Catholicism are in its wider view and ultimately in its balance of male and female elements. Bringing that sort of focus on the Church will likely irritate the close-minded but give some hope to those who stubbornly hold onto their place in then Church while the winds of division and exclusion rage on.

Fr. Rohr doesn't wear rose colored glasses when it comes to the Catholic church. That's doesn't mean he's not Catholic. He gives the best and worst of being Catholic, and is great for meditation.

Rohr is a polarizing figure and his ideas can lead the unwary away from the true teachings of the church. Check out Sharon Lee Giganti and the New Age Deception for more info or contact her personally.

I purchased this book and was EXTREMELY happy I did. What a great read!!! There are only four chapters, and they are very well organized. Each reads like warm butter. I am going to pick this book back up after I make my way through a few others purchased and re-read. It's that good! The chapter on what's great about the Catholic Church and the last one on the Saints is just wonderful!

Of note, I am going through RCIA with the Catholic Church, and boy, what a great resource of information. Even for cradle Catholics, this book is a must have. Highly recommended for anyone.

I know it is aimed at a particular and prevalent sort of religious searcher, but I didn't like what seemed to me to be the premise. It seemed to assume that the reader's question was not, "Is the Roman Church true it what it teaches and does?" but "With all the denominations I have to choose from, is this the church I should choose for myself? Why should I grace this denomination with my membership?" If this seemingly unquestioned assumption is not challenged at the outset, then when?

It reminds me of these quotes from the Screwtape Letters:
"I note what you say about guiding your patient's reading and taking care that he sees a good deal of his materialist friend. But are you not being a trifle naif? It sounds as if you supposed that argument was the way to keep him out of the Enemy's clutches. That might have been so if he had lived a few centuries earlier. At that time the humans still knew pretty well when a thing was proved and when it was not; and if it was proved they really believed it. They still connected thinking with doing and were prepared to alter their way of life as the result of a chain of reasoning. But what with the weekly press and other such weapons, we have largely altered that. Your man has been accustomed, ever since he was a boy, to having a dozen incompatible philosophies dancing about together inside his head. He doesn't think of doctrines as primarily "true" or "false," but as "academic" or "practical," "outworn" or "contemporary," "conventional" or "ruthless." Jargon, not argument, is your best ally in keeping him from the Church. Don't waste time trying to make him think that materialism is true! Make him think it is strong or stark or courageous--that it is the philosophy of the future. That's the sort of thing he cares about."

Or this one:
"I have been writing hitherto on the assumption that the people in the next pew afford no rational ground for disappointment. Of course if they do--if the patient knows that the woman with the absurd hat is a fanatical bridge-player or the man with squeaky boots a miser and an extortioner-- then your task is so much the easier. All you then have to do is to keep out of his mind the question "If I, being what I am, can consider that I am in some sense a Christian, why should the different vices of those people in the next pew prove that their religion is mere hypocrisy and convention?" You may ask whether it is possible to keep such an obvious thought from occurring even to a human mind. It is, Wormwood, it is! Handle him properly and it simply won't come into his head. He has not been anything like long enough with the Enemy to have any real humility yet. What he says, even on his knees, about his own sinfulness is all parrot talk. At bottom, he still believes he has run up a very favorable credit-balance in the Enemy's ledger by allowing himself to be converted, and thinks that he is showing great humility and condescension in going to church with these "smug", commonplace neighbors at all. Keep him in that state of mind as long as you can."

This book is well-written, very balanced, and shows depth & understanding of the Church throughout history. This is a "MUST READ" for all seekers of truth, especially Pastoral and Laity Leaders.